Strictly Business
by Chenai
Summary: She's the nanny of Triple H & Stephanie's child, and he's the arrogant, disliked member of the Raw locker room who tries to catch her attention. OCRandy & Other WWE stars.
1. Chapter 1

**Strictly Business**

**Chapter One:** You got the job!

**Summary:**_ She's the nanny of Triple H & Stephanie's child, and he's the arrogant, disliked member of the Raw locker room who tries to catch her attention. OC/Randy & Other WWE stars._

**Author Note:**_ Another story to add to the mix. I know I've done an Uncle/Niece pairing before, but this one is going to be extremely different. The only characters I own are Shannon & her Mom. The rest are my portrayal of the men and women who make up the WWE. _

_**This story contains sexual content and strong language which should not be read by anyone who is under the legal age of consent in your area.  
**_

_Enjoy! And as always, please read and review._

_**-----------------**_

1st August, 2006 : At Home in New Hampshire.

"Question eight. Aurora tells you a something that you know I won't approve of. Do you keep it a secret, or do you tell me straight away?"

Shannon Levesque blinked. "She's like a week old, Paul. She can't even speak yet."

"Hypothetically," He explained. "Just answer the question."

"Paul," Stephanie frowned, re-entering the living room. "Stop giving her such a hard time, you know she's perfect for the job.."

"You can never be too careful," Paul argued, looking up at his wife of almost three years.

"She's your Niece!" Stephanie shot back.

"She could be Supernanny Jo Frost and I'd still be asking her the same bunch of questions," Paul insisted, looking back over at his niece. "So? What's your answer?"

"Well, I guess it depends." His silence told her that he wanted her to elaborate. "I mean, if it was something that could possibly endanger her, or impose a threat on her life, than I would most definitely tell you or Stephanie. But if it was something private, like say a boy she liked, than I see that as a confidential secret that she has told me and I would keep it between us."

Paul rubbed his chin while thinking about her answer. "I can deal with that. But let me tell you, Aurora won't be dealing with boys until she's at least twenty-five years old. The same goes to you."

Shannon & Stephanie shared a look. Paul loved playing the over-protective Uncle, and she was sure that he was going to be ten times harder on his daughter as she was growing up. At nineteen years of age, not a day had gone by in her life when she hadn't had the support and love of her Uncle. Some would say he was a hard business man who would crush people on his way to the top, and others would say that he was the best damn wrestler alive today. But for Shannon, he was her father figure and a man who had been there for her when nobody else had.

"So I get the job?" She asked, her eyes lined with hope.

"Yeah, you get the job." He confirmed, catching her as she leapt into his arms. "Just don't make me regret it."

"I won't, I promise!" Shannon beamed, hugging him tightly. "So when do I start?"

"When Steph' finishes her maternity leave. But you'll have to attend Raw with me on Monday. It's been awhile since you've been on the road, so you'll need to get used to things first."

A huge wrestling fan herself, all of Shannon's best memories had been accumulated from the times she had spent on the road. She would often sit and reminisce on childhood moments she had spent within the WWE arena walls, whether she was ten, leaning to put on make-up with Sable, or eighteen, ogling the half naked men who would make up the WWE's wrestling division.

"Are you serious? I can't wait!" She said excitedly, clasping her hands together. "Infact, I'm going to go pack now!"

Paul chuckled as he watched his niece run towards the stairs and up to her bedroom. She had lived with him on and off since she was eight, but had officially moved into his New Hampshire home when she was old enough to stay there while he was away doing WWE shows. When he and Steph had started dating, both had sat down and decided that it would be best for Shannon to live with them until she was able to stand on her own two feet, financially and mentally.

"Do you think we made the right decision?" Steph asked, propping herself on the edge of the couch.

"To bring her on the road with us? Yeah, I do."

"Her mom called again today, you know." Steph said, her voice lowering.

Paul's mood changed, his expression darkening at the mention of his sister, Lynn. Although the siblings had once been close, their bond had been broken by Lynn's bad drug habit and lack of consideration for her daughter. It broke Paul's heart to think of the things Shannon must have been exposed to during the years she had lived with her mother and those exact same feelings were the reason why he was determined to keep his Niece close to him. To an outsider it may sound as though he had given up on his own flesh and blood, but if those exact same people knew how many times he had taken her in or paid for her rehabilitation, only to have her leave after a week, or betray him for a quick fix, then they would have given up hope to.

"What did she want?" He asked, pulling himself up.

"She said she needs to talk to you about borrowing some money for rehab..."

Paul laughed, shaking his head as he turned to face his wife. "Just like she did the last time? And what about the time before that?"

"She says that she wants to clean up her act, for Shannon's sake.."

"Bullshit," Paul growled, throwing his hands up in the air. "You know, it's not even about the fucking money. It's about how she uses her position as Shannon's mother, even though she has no regards for her thoughts or feelings, but only for the easiest way to extort money from us."

"I know, babe.." Steph sighed, rubbing his arms.

"I'm fucking sick of it, Steph." Paul told her, running a hand over his face. "All she ever does is cause us trouble.."

"It'll be okay, Hun." Stephanie rationalized, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Shannon's not going to fall for Lynn's make believe stories. She's smarter than that. Besides, this time next week she'll be on the road, under your watch."

Paul nodded his head, giving Stephanie a quick peck on the lips as he pulled her in close. "Yeah, I guess you're right."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: **Revealing Secrets

**Author Note/Disclaimer:** _I've brainstormed for this story, and I feel like i've had some good ideas so far, so hopefully you guys are liking it so far. Please read and review and tell me what you think of this story so far. As always all I own is Shannon, Jason, and the fake baby!? Ha.  
_

_**This story contains sexual content and strong language which should not be read by anyone who is under the legal age of consent in your area.  
**_

HBKnY2J4eva: _Here's an update for ya! xx_

xxxxcrazychickxxxx: _Hopefully! Hope you like this chapter xx_

Caged Sparkle: _I'm glad you liked the start of this story, and thank you for the reassurance! xx_

**------------------**

August 7th, 2006. : Raw in Memphis, TN

_**8 Missed Calls : Jason.**_

Shannon let out a loud sigh and flipped her cell phone shut, turning in time to see Paul and Shawn enter the locker room area. She smiled at them both and made her way over to give Shawn a hug.

"Well if it isn't the modern day Mary Poppins," Shawn grinned, messing up her hair. "How's it going, kid?"

"Good," Shannon smiled. "Paul, Steph called for you earlier.. I said you'd call her back."

"Ah," Paul nodded. "I will. But before I do, I want you to take a look at this."

Shannon looked on curiously as Paul placed a large box on the table in front of them and proceeded to rip it open. After pulling out quite a few instruction manuals, along with some other bits and pieces, Paul reached inside the box and took out a doll.

"I'm abit old for those, don't you think?" Shannon remarked, puzzled.

"This is the real care baby simulator plus," Paul boasted, holding it up to show her. "Apparently it's just like having a real baby, well.. Except it's made of plastic and has a bunch of wires for a brain."

"You're great with Aurora, Paul. You don't need to practice with a doll."

"It's not for me, it's for you." Paul told her. "I figured the practice would do you good. Especially if you're going to be taking care of my baby girl on a daily basis..."

Shannon shot him a look, as if to ask him if he was serious.

"It's nothing against you, Princess." Paul insisted, placing the doll back in its box. "It's just to show you what you're getting yourself into. Babies are hard work, you know? You need to be prepared."

"Well while you set that thing up, I'm going to go find catering. I'm starving." Shannon told them, her feelings slightly hurt by Paul's lack of faith in her ability to take care of her new baby cousin.

"Alright. Just hurry back so I can show you how this thing works."

"Whatever," Shannon mumbled, exiting the locker room.

Making her way down the corridor, Shannon's eyes stayed fixated on her cell phone, the list of missed calls worrying her so much that she barely even looked to see where she was going. Her eyes briefly rose to meet a pair of blue ones, but hardly took notice of the half naked man passing her by. She had too much on her mind. Feeling someone reach for her arm, Shannon spun around to look at the same man she had just passed.

"Hey, aren't you Paul's niece? Shanna?"

He was about 6'4 with short, spiked brown hair and a physique that most women dreamed of getting their hands on. He also had a handsome face with piercing blue eyes, the result of contact lenses never less, but well suited for his tanned skin. There was only one person who called her Shanna, to.

"Randy," She smiled.

"Wow.. The last time I saw you, you were-" He paused, looking her over again. "Wow."

"And the last time I saw you, you were taking power bars backstage, not marijuana." Shannon remarked, crossing her arms.

"How did you-"

"Paul told me about your suspension," She explained, cutting in. "But relax, I'm not going to judge you for it. We all make mistakes, right?"

"Right," He confirmed, surprised by her understanding.

"Just make sure you stay on the straight and narrow. This company needs you," Shanna told him, placing a hand on his shoulder as she leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "It was nice seeing you again, 'killer."

"You to, Shanna." Randy smirked, watching as she walked off.

The last time he had seen her she'd been no older than sixteen, nothing more than a kid that he would barely notice. But now, she was a woman. A beautiful blonde who had grown into her curves and had realized her true beauty. Her new found maturity and knowledge of the business appealed to him, and he was hoping that she would be around alot more so he could really get to know her.

Noticing something out of the corner of his eye, Randy reached down and picked up a cell phone, presumably Shannon's. Almost as soon as he did, the small black object began ringing. He placed it to his ear and answered it. "Hello?"

"Who the fuck is this?" Came a male voice. "And what are you doing with my girl's phone?"

"Hey, relax. I was just talking to Shanna a minute ago. She must have dropped her phone or something, that's all."

There was a long pause. "You tell Shannon to fucking call me."

And with that, he hung up. Randy frowned and pulled the phone away from his ear, holding onto it in order to give it back to Shannon later. He was also hoping that he would get the opportunity to ask about her supposed boyfriend. _Sounds like an asshole, to me.._

_**Later on that night...**_

Randy tossed and turned in his bed, pulling a pillow over his face as he tried to block out the sounds of the crying baby he could hear coming from the room next door. Realizing that it was hopeless, Randy decided to confront the parents of this screaming child. Pulling on a pair of tracksuit bottoms, Randy left the comfort of his own hotel room and dragged himself towards the culprit's room. As he waited for them to answer, Randy clenched his fists and got ready to yell at whomever it was denying him his sleep.

That all went out the window when Shannon answered the door, looking extremely frustrated.

"You have a kid?" Randy asked, bemused.

"No. I have a stupid piece of fucking plastic that won't shut up." Shannon growled, cradling the doll in her arms. "Paul gave it to me, thinking that it would help me be prepared for when I look after Aurora. But this thing? It's impossible."

"It's a doll, isn't there an off switch?" Randy asked, closing the door behind him as he followed her inside.

"I can't turn it off.. Paul will find out," Shannon sighed, propping herself on the edge of the bed as she rocked the "baby" back and forth, the simulator crying hysterically. "I've tried everything, Randy. I just can't get it to shut up."

"Have you tried throwing it out the window?"

Shannon shot him a look. "You're not helping."

"Give it here," Randy said, extending his arms as Shannon reluctantly handed him the baby simulator. While he tried his best to shut the thing up, Shannon fell back on the bed and placed her fingers in her ears, letting out a groan.

In less than four minutes, Randy had stopped the simulator from crying and had sent it to sleep. Shannon sat back up, her mouth dropping as she watched him place the pretend baby back in its crib. "Oh my god, I love you!" Shannon proclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck.

"Sssh. You'll wake it back up." Randy warned, quietly opening the hotel room door.

"Sorry," Shannon whispered, taking a step back. "But thanks, Randy. I'm sure you've had enough of me for today, huh?"

"Its fine," He smirked, leaving her hotel room. "Sweet dreams."

Shannon watched him leave, smiling to herself while pulling her blonde hair up into a loose ponytail. Almost as soon as she had done that, there was another knock on the door. She walked over and opened it, coming face to face with Randy once again.

"I've locked myself out of my room." Randy embarrassingly admitted. "Can I use your phone to call front desk?"

Holding back a laugh, Shannon stepped aside and allowed him in. "I've got to say, men have come up with better excuses than that to get inside of my hotel room, Randy.."

He playfully winked at her while dialling the number for front desk.

"I'm going to take off my make-up, I never had a chance to earlier," Shannon told him, walking into the bathroom. "Help yourself."

After informing front desk of his situation, and with the promise of a new room key within the next half hour, Randy sat back on a chair and relaxed. Almost as soon as he had sat down, the phone began ringing again.

"Leave it!" Shannon hollered from the bathroom.

"But it might be front desk ringing back-"

"It's not, believe me." She insisted. "Don't answer it."

He did as she asked, allowing the phone call to go to voicemail.

_**"Shannon? Are you there baby? Look babe, I'm sorry about what happened okay? I was mad; it was in the heat of the moment.. You know I'd never lay my hands on you, babe. It was a mistake. Please, just answer the phone.. Are you there boo?"**_

As the message ended, Randy's mind was cast back to earlier on in the day when he had returned her phone to her. He had mentioned the call he'd answered from her supposed "boyfriend" and she had froze. He distinctly remembered the petrified look that had took over her face, and after listening to that message, it was clear why.

Deciding to confront her, he got up and walked towards the bathroom, not bothering to knock as he pushed the door open. He felt the air leave his lungs when he saw her, her shirt lifted as she examined a large dark bruise that covered almost half of her side. Noticing his reflection in the mirror, Shannon jumped, recovering the sickening contusion as she spun around to face him. "Oh- Um, did you get your room key?"

"What happened to your stomach?" Randy asked, straight to the point.

"Sports injury," She lied, avoiding his eyes as she walked past him and back into her bedroom.

Randy frowned. Her lies were an obvious cover-up for her abusive relationship. "Are you sure that's all it is?"

"Look Randy, I think you should go. I'm tired and I've got to be up early tomorrow." Shannon told him, leading him back towards the front door. "Thanks for helping me with the baby, and for returning my phone to me earlier, I appreciate it."

Seeing that he was going to get nothing out of her, Randy nodded in defeat and pulled open the door, stepping out into the cold hallway. "Its fine, no problem."

"I'll see you around." Shannon stated, hurrying to shut the door.

_  
_Once it was closed, Shannon fell back against the door and let out a sigh. _What a mess._


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3: THE MOM WHO CRIED WOLF**

**A/N:** _Here's chapter 3 for you. I hope you all still remember this story since it's been awhile. Please read and review. As always all I own is Shannon. Also a big thanks to everyone who has reviewed this story so far. I love you guys!!!_

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August 21, 2006 : RAW in Bridgeport, CT

Shannon carefully laid Aurora down to rest in her crib and took a step backwards. She'd finally gotten her to sleep and could now sit down and relax in the confines of Paul and Stephanie's luxury tour bus. Costing just under 2.5 million dollars, the bus was equipped with a built-in bar, two bedrooms, a kitchen and a beautifully decorated living room that contained designer leather couches, a built-in plasma television, hi-tech stereo equipment and a custom designed marble floor that had Paul's Triple H logo etched into it. It was best described as a mini-mansion and made life on the road a lot easier for the family. The bus was also an added help for Shannon who found it much easier to take care of Aurora without the aggravation of the music and fireworks inside of the arena.

It was great to have your own space to lounge about in, but it was even better if you needed to avoid someone who would be in the arena. In Shannon's case she was using it to get away from Randy Orton. She hadn't spoken to him since he had seen her bruises and was doing her best to stay out of his way in order to avoid having to give him an actual explanation. She knew he hadn't fallen for her sports injury excuse and was sure that he'd go on and on at her until he got the truth.

Shannon checked on Aurora one last time before grabbing her ipod and heading towards the door, settling down in the doorway while letting her feet rest on the step below her. She placed in only one ear phone so she could keep a listen out for Aurora and hit play. She felt a wave of contentment hit her as Simple Plan blasted from the headphones and closed her eyes, allowing a small sigh to escape from her lips.

_Randy was the least of her worries right now._

Shannon was doing her best not to cry, but with the way she was feeling inside it almost seemed impossible not to. Her mother had called her that morning, claiming that she had something urgent that she needed to talk to her about.

_"Hey Mom," Shannon said in a cheery voice, surveying the area to make sure that Paul was not in earshot. She knew that if he heard her talking to her mother than he would go crazy._

_"Hi Baby," Lynn chimed._

_Shannon noted that her voice sounded kind of, well.. strange. It almost sounded as though she was high or had been drinking. Shannon shook her head. That couldn't be it! The last time they had spoke her mother had sworn to her that she was clean. "What's up?"_

_"Well baby, I need to tell you something," She managed to get out, her words barely understandable. "I'm sick."_

_"Your sick?" Shannon repeated._

_"__That's__ what I just said, isn't it!" Lynn snapped. "Child, do you ever listen?"_

_"Of course I do," Shannon insisted. "What's wrong?"_

_"I'll spare you the details, honey. I don't want to upset you." She said it like she was doing her a favour. "But I want you to know that I've consulted my doctor and the bills, well... I don't think- Well I know I won't be able to afford them on my own."_

_"How much do you need?" She asked straight away._

_"Well. Obviously I cant give you an exact amount because they're going to increase along with my treatment but-"_

_"How much, Mom?" Shannon cut in. She'd always had a __tendency__ to ramble._

_"Five thousand dollars."_

_"Five thousand?" She choked. "You know __I'd__ love to help, Mom. but-"_

_"What about those trust funds Paul set up for you?" She was quick to bring up. "Cant you withdraw money from those?"_

_"Paul makes me explain every cent that I spend. You know, you'd be better talking to him about this-"_

_"How can I when your Uncle refuses to even answer my calls?" She growled. "And don't get me started on that wife of his.."_

_Shannon sighed. "Steph's the best thing __that's__ ever happened to him. But look, I'll try and talk to him about it okay?"_

_"Wonderful," Lynn replied in a satisfied tone. "I knew I could always depend on you darling."_

Shannon was blinded by love for her mother and it hadn't even crossed her mind that maybe, just maybe, she could be lying. That this could be another one of her elaborate plans to extort money from Stephanie & Paul. Of course Shannon was aware of her mothers struggle with drugs, she'd been there to witness a large portion of it, but as far as she was knew it was a thing of the past. She had chosen to temporarily forget about the lies she had told and the money she had taken under false pretences and was instead concerned about this mystery illness her mother was claiming to be suffering from.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Shannon opened her eyes and looked up at Paul. She forced a smile and paused her music, getting up to greet him with a hug.

"That sounds like some angry music," Paul observed as they pulled apart. "Everything okay?"

She hesitated, but finally answered him with a nod of the head. "I'm peachy. Aurora's sleeping inside if you want to check on her.."

Paul arched a brow. He could always tell when Shannon was lying; her lips moved and she avoided eye contact. "Alright. But are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Paul. God!" She snapped, re-entering the bus.

Paul followed her in and settled down on a chair opposite to where she was now sitting. After a minute or so of silence and a whole lot of staring, Shannon couldn't take it any more and was letting him know just what was on her mind. It took her two or three minutes to explain everything, from the phone conversation to Lynn's supposed sickness and the money that she needed to pay off the doctors fees. Paul listened intently, not saying a word until she was done. Shannon finally finished speaking and took in a deep breath, waiting for his reaction. It was surprising to say the least...

_... He laughed at her._

"That's hilarious," He managed to get out between breaths. "I've got to give credit where its due, this is her best idea yet!"

Shannon's mouth dropped open in shock. She couldn't believe that he was laughing at something so serious! "It's not funny, Paul!"

"Oh, C'mon Shan. You don't believe that garbage, do you? Your Mothers a scam artist. She's just looking for another way to extort money out of us, you know that."

Shannon didn't know that. Infact that was the last thing she was thinking right now. Paul's laughs eventually woke Aurora who began to cry from inside the bedroom. Rising from her seat, she shot him a dirty look and tended to her baby cousin, lifting her out of the crib as she desperately tried to sooth her cries.

"Sorry." Paul said, appearing in the doorway.

"Sorry for what?" She frowned, rocking Aurora back and forth. "For waking Aurora, or for being a complete and utter assh-"

"Language," He warned, pointing to his daughter. "And I'm sorry if I'm not falling for your Mothers act like you are, Shannon. But can you blame me? She's been doing this for years now and I'm sick of it! I'm sick of handing over rehabilitation money that ends up going in a syringe or up her damn nose."

Shannon looked down at Aurora. That remark hit her hard.

"And you know what? Most of all I'm sick of what she's doing to you."

Shannon didn't say anything. She couldn't say that she was thrilled at the way Lynn was either. "She's my Mom, Paul." She said, almost in a whisper.

"I know," He sighed, placing a hand on her shoulder. "And I know you love her, but you can't keep putting yourself through this time and time again. It's not fair."

There was silence for a moment before Shannon finally broke it and carried Aurora into the buses living room area. "Aurora's wide awake now, so I'm going to take her out for awhile. I'll be back before the show starts."

He nodded his head. As upset as she was, Paul knew that his daughter was in safe hands. "Have you got everything you need? Do you need any money or anything?"

"The baby stuffs in the back of the car and no, I've got enough cash on me." She said without showing any real emotion.

"Alright," Paul sighed, kissing them both on the forehead. "Don't be too long."

_**A few hours later...**_

Shannon waved goodbye to John Cena and pushed Aurora's stroller further down the hall. He had been the fourth person to stop and make conversation with her. It was something she was used to. Having grown up in the business she was like a little sister to almost every person backstage and also a good ally considering she was like a granddaughter to Vince McMahon.

"Hey, Shana. WAIT UP!"

_Make that five..._ Keeping a hand on the stroller, Shannon turned her head to see Randy jogging in her direction. She did her best to smile as he approached her, wanting nothing more to disappear. "Hey."

"How's it going?" He asked, doing his best to break the ice.

She shrugged. "Can't complain."

"Look, what I saw last week..." Randy started.

"Don't Randy-"

"Just hear me out?" He interrupted with hopeful eyes.

She sighed, nodding her head. "Okay, but make it quick. I've been gone hours.. Paul's probably losing his mind."

"Seeing you hurt like that last week scared me." He admitted, looking directly at her. "It made me think of what I would do if that was my sister, or someone else close to me. And... thinking about it like that, I actually considered telling Paul."

Her eyes shot open. "Rand-"

"But I'm not going to." He finished with a sigh. "I have enough understanding of these kind of situations to know that if I tell Paul, it's only going to make things worse."

"Thanks," She said almost in a whisper.

"But," He said, taking her small hands in his own larger ones. "You're worth more than this. You need to find a guy who's going to treat you like a Princess, not a punching bag. You're beautiful, smart and deserve better, which is why you need to break up with him..."

"It's not that simple," She argued, pulling back her hands.

"Why? You're going to be travelling with us most of the time. Can you really see this guy showing up when he knows you have a family full of athletes watching your back?"

"I guess..." She sighed. "But-"

"But nothing." He interrupted. "If things get tough and you need someone there, then all you need to do is ask."

"Thanks Rand," Shannon said as he embraced her. "You have your own problems. You shouldn't have to deal with mine."

"Don't worry about it." Randy shrugged. "Besides.. You didn't judge me when you found out about the whole Marijuana thing-"

"And the Anger management thing," Shannon added with a grin.

"And that," He smirked. "So thanks. I appreciate it."

She nodded her head as the two shared a moments silence. "So," Randy finally spoke up, moving to the front of the stroller. "You're taking care of Paul's Princess, huh? Well... One of Paul's Princesses." He corrected, referring to Shannon.

"Yup," She smiled. "I'm officially on baby duty."

"Ah. You enjoying it?" He asked, leaning in to pull some funny faces at Aurora.

"It's fun being on the road with Paul & Stephanie," She admitted, doing her best not to laugh at him. "And I love being around Aurora."

He nodded his head slowly. "Well I've gotta go, I have a matching coming up. But the offer still stands, you know? If you need to talk or whatever than just call me. You have my number."

"I may just take you up on that offer," Shannon replied. "I'll see you later?"

"Sure." He confirmed. "Bye-bye Aurora!"

Randy turned and disappeared in the opposite direction as Shannon carried on until she reached Paul & Stephanie's dressing room. Knocking first, barely a second passed before Paul had opened the door and ushered them in. "You've been gone ages!"

"It's been a couple of hours," She shrugged. "Didn't you get my text messages?"

"I told him he was worrying over nothing," Stephanie chimed.

"With how we left things earlier I was concerned." Paul admitted. "I think we need to talk."

"I'll take Aurora to see my Dad," Steph offered.

Paul nodded and gave them both a kiss while Shannon made herself comfortable on the couch. Once they were gone, Paul turned to face her and sighed. "About this situation with your Mom?"

"You're going to send her the money?" Shannon asked hopefully.

"Yeah, like that's going to happen." Paul retorted, rolling his eyes.

Shannon's eyes narrowed. "Then why are we even bothering to talk about it?"

"Because we need to." He replied matter-of-factly.

"Go on then," She shrugged. "Explain why you're abandoning your sister in her time of need."

He bit his tongue to stop him from snapping. "I'm not abandoning her, Shannon. I'm just choosing to ignore her bullshit games. I mean, what's this supposed illness she has, anyway?" Shannon said nothing. She didn't actually know. "My point exactly."

"She didn't want to upset me," Shannon insisted, crossing her arms. "That's why she didn't tell me."

"Sure," Paul laughed. "Like that's the reason."

"What if she is sick, Paul? How are you going to live with yourself knowing that you could have helped her but you didn't?"

"Let's be real, Shan. If your mothers going to die from anything than its going to be from all those drugs she's taking. I've tried so many times before to help her, I've sent her money, I've paid for rehab but time and time again she's taken that help that I've tried to give her and has thrown it back and my face. Why do you think I look after you? Because she cant be bothered to."

Shannon looked hurt. No child likes to be told that they're not wanted by their own Mother. "Well I'm sorry that you got lumbered with me..."

"It's not like that," Paul sighed. "You know I love you like you're my own kid. Steph and I love having you living with us, it's just, when I think of all the things you must have seen when you were growing up, before you were with me..." He trailed off, taking in a deep breath. "It makes my blood boil. How could someone put their child through that?"

She looked down. "That's in the past, Paul..."

"And it's going to live with you forever, whether you like it or not." Paul said sadly.

"Why can't you just take the money from my trust fund?" Shannon huffed. "I'll pay you back."

"It's not about the money, Shan." Paul replied. "Believe me."

"I'm going to go see her. I'll make sure the money is going to the doctor if that's what you're worried about," Shannon told him. "Just give her a chance."

"Woah, woah, woah." Paul interjected, getting to his feet. "There is no way in hell that I am letting you go visit your mother. NO WAY."

Shannon frowned, climbing off the couch. "Your not my father. I'll do what I want."

Paul's eyes narrowed. The father remark was uncalled for. "While you're living under my roof, you'll do what I say."

Shannon glared at him as she began collecting her things together. "What are you doing?" Paul asked, following her around.

"Leaving." Shannon said, heading straight for the door. "I don't want to be around you right now."

Before he could say anything, she was gone. Paul let out a frustrated sigh and turned, punching the wall next to him.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 9: IN CASE OF EMERGENCY**

**A/N:**_ Another chapter for you! You'll notice this story goes back and forth between Randy & Shannon to Paul & Steph. You'll get it when you read it :) Also I've got to be honest, all this steroid related stuff has been annoying me lately so the reference made in this story is just a way of me dealing with Randy's supposed involvement. I'm not saying he takes them, because honestly I don't know but the whole matter was just something I wanted to play with. _

_Thanks to all of you have reviewed and please do the same for this chapter. Much love! _

_Ps. All I own is Shannon.. lol_

_----------------------_

_August 24, 2006_

_"Hi Randy? It's me. I mean... It's Shannon. You said I could call if I needed something and well... I kinda need you right about now. Okay, so I really need you right now. Um.. Call me back if you can, okay? I mean, if you're not busy or anything. Okay, I'm rambling.. But you can reach me on this number.. It's the hospitals. Bye."_

Shannon's voice mail message had scared Randy half to death. He knew Shannon well enough to know that she wouldn't have called him unless it was serious and had decided to not take her ask for help light heartedly. Now four hours on, Randy paced up and down the hospitals waiting room expecting the worst.

He stayed still long enough to cast a glance around the room. A number of injured people took up the uncomfortable hospital chairs, some bleeding from open wounds while others groaned from more internal injuries. Infact the whole thing reminded him of a scene from Gridlock'd or some other gangster flick that took place in some crack infested town. What Shannon, the niece of a a multi-millionaire and the surrogate granddaughter of his boss, Vince McMahon was doing in a city like this, he had no idea.

He heard a commotion coming from further on down the corridor and frowned, instantly recognizing one of the raised voices as Shannon's. His expression changed to one of horror when he saw her doubled over with a pained expression across her bruised face as she struggled to pull herself towards the front desk, a doctor following behind her looking extremely annoyed. "There is no fucking way I'm staying here," She wheezed. "I signed the forms.. Just let me go already."

"I can't stop you from leaving, but I think it would be wise for you to reconsider. Your injuries are extensive and you need to rest."

"Rest here?" She scoffed, instantly regretting it when she felt a twinge in her ribs. By then she had reached the front desk and was able to use it to steady herself. "Okay, ow."

Randy made his presence known by placing a hand on her back. His instincts were telling him to do more, to wrap an arm around her at least, but without him knowing the extent of her injuries he decided against it incase he hurt her. "Shana?"

"Randy." She breathed, her eyes widening at the sight of him. "You came."

"Told you I'd be here if you needed me," He reminded. "What happened?"

"We'll talk about it on the way out of here," Shannon said, grabbing a handful of his shirt as she transfered her weight from the desk and onto him. He supported her easily, but the slight movement alone worsened the throbbing sensation in her chest. It didn't take a genius to realize that she had a few broken ribs to go along with the bruising on her face.

"Maybe you should stay here?" He suggested. "You look pretty banged up."

"Randy please," She managed to get out, her eyes firmly closed in order to imprison the tears that threatened to leave them. "I cant stay in this place any longer.."

**Meanwhile..**

"You're going to walk a hole into our carpet, Paul." Stephanie observed with a frown while cradling Aurora in her arms. "Please just sit down."

"It's been three days, Steph." He stressed, stopping infront of her. "Three days and not one single phone call.."

"It is out of character, yes." Stephanie admitted with a sigh. "But she's probably staying with a friend. You know how stubborn she can be when she's mad.. It's something she picked up from you."

Paul settled down in a chair opposite his wife and let his head fall in his hands. He replayed their last conversation in his head over and over again and reminded himself of all the different ways he could have handled it - all the things he could have said without driving her away. Stephanie settled Aurora down in her crib and slowly made her way towards him, her hand resting on his shoulder as he continued to mull over what had happened.

"I'll call around her friends. If we don't hear anything from her soon than I'll call the police." Stephanie said grimly.

---------------------

"So Shana from the block, what brought you to this part of town?" Randy asked, breaking their silence.

Shannon's gaze moved from the car window and traveled to Randy's face. She looked anything but amused by his remark and the look she gave him made him wish that he hadn't bothered speaking. "I'd laugh Rand, but every time I do it feels like there's some little man sat inside my stomach stabbing me with my own fucking ribs."

"Broken ribs suck," He answered knowingly. "So are you going to tell me what happened yet?"

Shannon looked down at her hands. "It's no big deal."

"You called me, therefore it must be." Randy stated, watching her from the corner of his eye. "That or you just wanted to get me alone."

She rolled her eyes, a grin evident as her gaze returned to the window. "That was my plan all along, Orton. How did you figure it out?"

"Easy.. Just look at me." He answered in typical Randy Orton fashion, his lips curling into that familiar grin, the one that had dozens of women pooling at his feet night after night. Shannon shook her head in response and tried to move into a comfier position, only to regret her decision when she found herself in even more pain than before. Randy watched her from the corner of his eye, secretly wishing that there was something he could do to make it all better. "Just try to stay still, okay? We'll find a hotel soon."

Truth is they had been driving around for little over an hour now and had come across nothing but broken buildings and empty warehouses. Randy still couldn't understand what she was doing in this neighborhood and decided to ask again. "So.. What are you doing here? It's hardly a place you'd expect to find a Levesque."

"Not counting my Mom who would probably fit right in here," Shannon mumbled. "But if you must know, my boyfriend lives here. Paul and I had a fight so I've been staying with him the last couple of days."

"You and Paul had a fight? What about?" Randy pressed.

"Just family stuff," She answered vaguely. She had no real desire to go into detail about the argument they'd had. The situation with her mother was something she was trying to put to the back of her mind. "I figured that I could hide out here until things calmed down but Jason and I got into a fight and..." She trailed off. "As you can see, it didn't end well."

Randy gripped the steering wheel tighter. He'd never even met this Jason guy and yet he already wanted to ring his neck. How could he hurt someone like Shannon? She was one of the sweetest girls he had ever met and just the thought of anyone laying a hand on her made his blood boil.

"I never thought I'd be one of those girls.." She said all of a sudden. "The ones who get beaten up by their boyfriends. I always looked at them and wondered how they could do that to themselves, you know?" She paused to think, a silence washing over them as Randy waited patiently for her to continue. "And then I became one of them.. I became a statistic."

A tear made its way down her cheek as she reminisced on the past twelve months of her life. The endless beatings, the make up that she would need to hide the bruises.. It all seemed like a nightmare yet it was her reality. Randy took his left hand off of the steering wheel and used it to grasp her right one. She smiled at his gesture and let her head fall against the glass window. She was trying so hard not to break down, not only to save face but to spare her the extra pain that came with anything that involved breathing.

They rode in silence until Randy finally spotted a decent looking hotel and quickly pulled his car into the parking lot. He found an empty space and shut off the engine, letting his free hand fall into his lap while the other remained entwined with Shannon's. "We're here." He said softly.

"Does that mean I have to move?" Shannon groaned.

"Afraid so," He said with a sympathetic smile. "You want me to go in and see if the hotel has a wheelchair or something?"

"Er, no." She frowned. "Just get me my purse? I have some sunglasses in there that will Atleast cover my face." He did as she asked and retrieved her Fendi bag for her, watching as she reached in and pulled out some Dior sunglasses. She put them on, covering up the dark bruises around her eyes. "Thanks."

It took a good twenty minutes before both were inside the hotel and at the front desk. Through short breaths, Shannon had insisted on paying for her own hotel room and Randy had finally agreed, not wanting to get her worked up. "I'll pay by card," She told the clerk, handing him her American Express card. Paul had given it her last year in case of emergency. Of course she had counted a number of shopping trips and outings as "emergencies" too but Paul had never minded.

After a second, the clerk handed it back to her. "I'm sorry miss, but your card has been declined. Would you like to try another one?"

She frowned, gently pushing his hand back. "Run it again."

He did as she asked, only to come back with the same result as before. It took a minute but it finally dawned on her. Taking the card from him, she shoved it into her purse and let out a growl. "He's canceled my god damn credit card!"

**------------**

"There, her cards canceled." Paul announced to no one in particular, grinning like he was almost proud of what he had done.

Stephanie frowned. Paul's attitude had gone from anger to sadness, to guilt and back to anger in a matter of hours. "And that's a good thing?"

"If she's going to be a brat than I sure as hell am not going to help pay for her to worry me into an early grave. Hell, for all I know she could be on her way out of town to see that crack head mother of hers."

"Or she could already be there.." Stephanie shrugged.

Paul's eyes narrowed. Obviously that thought had never crossed his mind. Having raised her from an early age, Shannon had inherited alot of his characteristics and with the way that they had left things it would not surprise him if she were to go visit her mother not just out of concern, but to spite him too. She had always been the type of girl who liked to get one over on the authoritative figure. A standard Levesque move.

"Okay.. Where's my phone?"

**------------**

"Where's my phone? I'm going to rip him a new one." Shannon seethed.

"Look, I'll pay for it. You can barely breathe let alone walk so I think we should just get you upstairs and into bed." He eyed the clerk who's brow had rose at his choice of words. "To rest." He clarified, shaking his head. "So how much is that room?"

Randy kept his promise and took care of the bill, helping the injured blonde up to the room he had purchased for the night. He carefully laid her back on the bed and tried to help her get comfy. "I'm sorry.." She announced all of a sudden. Randy eyed her suspiciously, carefully taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "For dragging you here. You have better places to be."

"You hardly dragged me here, Shana." Randy smiled. "I came because I wanted to. I care for you, y'know?"

"You care?" She smiled as though he had just told her one of his deepest darkest secrets. "Aw, Rand.. I'm touched."

He winked at her as he got to his feet and headed towards the door. "I'm going down to the bar to get you some ice for your face. Don't move until I get back, okay?" She nodded. "I'll be right back."

"Bring me back a double vodka!" She called after him, making him chuckle.

Randy came back about twenty minutes later with an ice bucket and let himself in. As soon as he had gone downstairs a hoard of fans had spotted him and had rushed over asking for pictures and autographs. "Shana?" He called out, noticing she had moved from her place on the bed. He began to panic and was given reason to when he heard the sound of someone heaving coming from inside the bathroom.

He placed the ice bucket down on the side and entered the bathroom, his breath catching in his throat when he saw Shannon in a heap on the floor with her head over the toilet as she continued to painfully throw up the contents of her stomach. Randy was immediately at her side and held her hair back for her as she repeated the act once more.

Throwing up while you had broken ribs wasn't the easiest task and the slightest movement was excruciating. He could only imagine how much pain she was in and the fact that he couldn't do anything about it frustrated the hell out of him.

"I'm sorry.." She said through sobs as she fell back into his arms.

"Stop apologizing," He ordered as he cleaned her up and helped her back to bed. It was the only thing he could do and the situation was making him feel rather helpless. "I'm sorry I can't make this better, Shana."

"You being here makes it better," She answered, her eyes closed as she tried to block out the pain that was coursing through her body. Randy left her for a second and returned with some ice wrapped up in a small towel. "Whats that for?"

"Your ribs," He answered, settling down on the edge of the bed. He carefully moved her shirt up to expose her heavily bruised abdomen and placed the makeshift ice pack over it. Shannon flinched at the contact it made with her stomach and let out a cry of pain as he held it there. "It'll help, sweetheart. I promise."

"Hey Rand?" She said after a few minutes of silence. "Aren't management going to be mad that you're here? You have house shows booked all week."

Randy tensed up. "I've got time off from house shows for awhile."

Shannon's eyes shot open. Vince was like a Grandfather to her and although she was used to seeing to his kind and caring side, she knew that he would never allow one of his top performers to take time off unless it was an emergency or they were in trouble. "What happened? What's wrong?"

He paused, unsure of how he should word his reason. "I've been suspended." He answered simply. How else could you break that to someone without it sounding as bad as it was? Her silence told him that she wanted him to elaborate. "For a Wellness Policy violation."

She said nothing for a second as she processed what he had just told her. "Oh, Rand.." She said, unable to hide the disappointment in her voice. "Please tell me you're not-" She couldn't even bring herself to say it.

"I'm not taking steroids, Shana." He said, knowing full well what she was getting at. "I didn't have a prescription for the pain pills I was taking so Vince freaked and took me off house shows for awhile."

Shannon was still skeptical. "If there's anything bothering you than you know you can talk to me, right? I'm not here to judge you."

"I know," He smiled, removing the ice pack from her stomach. "But just let me worry about you, okay?"

Shannon didn't reply and instead thought about what he had just told her. She'd been around the business for a long time and was well aware of its dark side. Hell, the company had only just recently lost Eddie Guerrero and although his death had been unrelated to drugs, his past addictions may have contributed to his early departure from their lives. "I don't want you to be one of those wrestlers who are found dead in their hotel room, Randy."

"I'm not going to be," He sighed, reaching up to brush the hair out of her face. "I promise."

"Good, because I need you." She admitted, her eyes closing as despite her pain, she drifted off to sleep.

Randy waited until he was sure that she was asleep before retrieving his cell phone. He knew that she would resent him from doing this, but he knew that with her condition, he had no choice.

"Paul? It's Randy. I know where Shannon is."

**------------**

"She's with Randy," Paul announced once he had hung up his phone.

The look of horror and numbness on his face told her that he knew more than he was letting on. "Oh God, Paul. What is it? Is she okay?"

"She's hurt." He announced, his voice breaking as he turned to look at her. "Randy got a call from her asking if he could pick her up from the hospital. He got there and apparently she told him that her boyfriend had done it."

"Boyfriend?" Stephanie blinked. "I didn't know that she was seeing anybody.."

"Neither did I," Paul seethed, his fists clenching. "She asked him not to call, but he said it was bad enough that he had to." He pinched the bridge of his nose as he took a second to compose himself, his emotions close to becoming the best of him as he thought of what had happened to his niece. He eyed his wife who now had a hold of her own cell phone and was dialing a number. "What are you doing?"

"I'm booking you a flight," She informed him. "Where is she?"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Birthday Girl

**A/N: **_Randy's married with a bun in the oven, John Cena's engaged... What's up with the world? LOL. Anyways here's another chapter, sorry it took so long. Re-read the last chapter if you don't understand the first bit.. I've decided to try and include Randy's, how do we put it.. "troubles" in this story. Remember that I'm not his best friend or anything, I don't know what's REALLY going on, but it's a fun to play with what we hear. Enjoy._

_Thanks to all my reviewers.. You guys rock my socks. haha_

_Also, I'm going to start recommending authors and stories since I read so much. Two of my favourite stories have just come to an end, so go check out IMissPadfoot's "The Trouble With Love" and also Kenny-Bell's "An Untold Story, Being Told." Make sure you hassle them to do sequels.. haha. Queen Orton also does some great stories that have my three favourite boys involved. Check "The Titan Trifecta" and "The Rising." :)_

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September 11th, 2006 : RAW in New York

"Randy!"

Randy winced when he heard Vince McMahon's voice call after him and plastered a smile on his face as he turned to greet his boss. "Mr McMahon, what can I do for you?"

"I need to speak with you in my office," He informed him, no hint of a smile on his face. "Now."

Randy nodded and followed Vince to his office while running every possible scenario through his head. Was he in trouble again? Had someone made another complaint? Was Vince going to fire him?? Oh God, had he fucked up his last chance?

He continued to worry about what Vince was going to say until they were in the confines of his office and the older man began to explain what was on his mind. "Your 30 day suspension from live shows and appearances is almost up and I want you back on the road as of a week Wednesday."

Randy's eyes widened but he also managed to let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't been on the road properly since mid-August, and although at first he had enjoyed the time off, the novelty had worn off and he'd soon started to resent it. "Really? I'm back full time?"

"You're back full time," Vince confirmed. "But I promise you something, Orton. If you fuck up again then I will not hesitate to fire your ass, do I make myself clear?" Randy nodded quickly, knowing that with everything that had happened he was lucky to even have a job there. "Wonderful."

Vince paused when there was a knock on his office door and signalled for them to come in. He smiled up at pleasantly at his assistant Martha who stuck her head around the door and peered over at him. "Mr McMahon, I just thought that you may like to know that Stephanie's just arrived with Shannon."

Vince's face lit up. To him Shannon was the Granddaughter he'd never had and nothing had changed when Aurora had come along. He'd watched her grow from a little girl to a beautiful young woman and absolutely adored her as though she was a born in member of the McMahon family.

Randy didn't know what to think about the possibility of seeing Shannon again. She hadn't attended a taping since Randy had picked her up from the hospital and all he had heard was a few passing comments that had basically said that she had decided to stay with Stephanie for the length of her maternity leave; something that they believed but was an obvious lie to Randy who knew that she must have still been recovering from what her ex boyfriend had done to her.

"My girls are here?" He grinned, rising from his seat. "Randy, I'm afraid we'll have to cut this meeting short, but remember what I said okay?"

Randy nodded absent mindedly and left, the two men heading in different directions as Vince went off to search for his daughter and surrogate granddaughter while Randy looked for somewhere to hide out. It sounded stupid; a grown man hiding from a nineteen year old girl, but he was worried about how she would react. She'd never let on that she was mad at him for telling Paul, but she also hadn't said she wasn't either. He thought alot of Shannon and didn't want her to blow up at him.

Then he heard her laugh.

His eyes travelled over to the two blondes that stood by the monitors. He easily recognized the taller, peroxide one to be Torrie Wilson and the sudden somersault that his stomach did told him that the dirty blonde beside her was Shannon.

He stood watching her for a second before Torrie finally caught him looking over and nudged her friend. It was when she turned and looked over him that he thought back to the last time that he had saw her.

**[flashback**

_Randy lay beside Shannon on the bed and did his best to pay attention to the movie they were watching. He checked his watch for the hundredth time that night and held back a nervous sigh. Had he done the right thing by calling Paul? What if Shannon hated him for it?_

_He heard a laugh and then a wince come from beside him and instantly turned his head towards her in concern. "Maybe watching a comedy wasn't such an idea," She said with a weak smile as she carefully moved into what she thought would be a comfier position. Randy watched but was unable to say anything. He felt awful for betraying her trust but seeing her in so much pain made him believe that he was right to tell her Uncle what had happened._

_Shannon's eyes shot open when she heard a hollow knock on the door. "Who's that!?" She asked in a barely audible whisper, sitting herself up._

_Randy tried to swallow down the lump in his throat while silently getting up and heading towards the door. He knew who it was and didn't need to check. Instead he pulled open the door and stood back as Paul barged in with Stephanie close behind. _

_"Shannon?" Paul got his first look at his battered and bruised niece and almost lost it. Her face was a mess and it was only when she tried to move that he began to understand the full extent of her injuries and just why Randy had called him. _

_"Paul, I-"_

_Paul signalled for her to be quiet and took in a deep breath. He didn't cry often but if he didn't get out of that room, he was sure that he would break down. "Steph, help her get her things together. We're leaving." He said finally, heading back towards the door._

_Steph moved to Shannon's bedside and moved the hair that was stuck to her face. "Look at you," She sighed, near to tears herself. "Why didn't you call us? We were worried sick.."_

_"I'm sorry," Was the only thing Shannon could say as she began to cry._

_Paul finally returned while Stephanie was in the bathroom with Shannon helping her change. He paced up and down the room with his fists clenched at his sides while Randy stood unsure of what to do or say. "Who is he?" He said finally, turning to look at the younger man. "Who's the son of a bitch who did that to my little girl?"_

_"I don't know," Randy answered honestly. "She wouldn't tell me."_

_Paul paused before acknowledging Randy again. "And why did she call you? Do you two have something going on? Is that why that bastard put his hands on her? Because of you!?"_

_Randy raised his hands in defence as Paul moved towards him. "Hey man, Shannon and I are just friends. I swear to God..."_

_He was about to say something but stopped when he saw Steph helping Shannon from the bathroom. Immediately he was at her side supporting her while Stephanie went to gather her things and open the door. Randy didn't know what to do; he wanted to talk to her, to comfort her and tell her it was all going to be okay but he was unsure if she'd want him to now that she knew he had called Paul. Instead he stood back and watched them leave without a word from Shannon and only a 'thank you' from Stephanie._

_**[end of flashback**_

Shannon stared at him for a second before she said something to Torrie, prompting the diva to hug her and walk off. She then turned back to him and signalled for him to come over, only to surprise him with a hug once he was close enough.

"Thank you," she said, leaning up to place a kiss on his cheek.

"For what?" He blinked.

"For coming to my rescue," She smiled. "I owe you."

"I'm just glad you're okay," Randy answered honestly, his cocky facade gone as he stood and spoke with the young blonde. "You are okay, right?"

"I'm okay," She confirmed with a small nod. "Paul and I sat down and talked; I mean really talked.. I told him everything."

"That's good," He said slowly.

"Yeah.. There were a few crossed wires that we needed to sort out but we did, and you know... I think it brought us closer." She admitted, smiling to herself. She was definitely alot happier since the last time he had saw her.

"And what about Jason?" He brought up, noticing her expression darken instantly at the mention of her abusive ex boyfriend. "Are you two...?"

"We're not together, Randy." She interrupted, a small sigh escaping her lips. "I haven't spoken to him since what happened. I mean, he's called but..." She trailed off and looked down, struggling for the right words. When she finally found them she met his eyes again. "He's not worth losing my family and future over. And you were right; I'm more than some guy's punching bag and I guess it just took me awhile to realize that for myself."

"Well I'm glad you did," He answered, taking her small hands in his own. "Alot of girls aren't strong enough to walk away, but you have. That says alot about your character, Shana - You didn't let him win and I'm so fucking proud of you for that."

For a second he swore he saw tears begin to pool in her eyes, but before they had a chance to fall down her cheeks he used his thumb to wipe them from existence. She stared up at him with thankful eyes and opened her mouth to say something, only to stop when she heard Jim Ross's voice bellowing from the monitor closest to them. Her eyes widened when he announced that Trish's match was next and she quickly moved back so that she could see what was going on.

"Oh man, it's Trish's last match on RAW." Shannon said sadly, everything they had just talked about being pushed to the back of her mind as she thought about her friends impending retirement. Tonight she would face Mickie James in her penultimate match and Shannon had promised to watch. "I can't believe its tonight, on my birthday of all nights..." She rambled to herself.

Randy's brow rose. "Your birthday? Today's your birthday?"

"Yep, the big 2-0." She answered, not seeing what the big deal was. "Wow, Trish looks pumped. This is going to be a good match.."

Randy blinked a couple of times. Last time he checked, hitting twenty was a huge step. "Are you going to celebrate?"

She shrugged, eyes not leaving the monitor. "Doubt it."

He frowned. "You can't stay in on your twentieth, Shana. It's illegal. I'm taking you out."

"I don't think so," She said with a shake of her head, crossing her arms. "Me, a take-away and the Notebook DVD have a date. Sorry."

He scrunched his face up and eyed the monitor in time to see the referee ring the bell for Trish and Mickie's match. "Tell you what, if Trish wins this match then you have to let me take you out tonight.."

"No way. One; you've probably checked the board and know who wins, and two; there is no way that Vince is going to have Trish lose tonight. It's like flipping a two headed coin and picking tails." She answered matter-of-factly.

"For your information I don't know who wins, but how about this? If she wins in under five minutes, than you have to go out with me." Randy compromised. "Does that sound fair?"

Shannon thought for a second before finally nodding her head, shaking his extended hand in agreement. "Your on, Orton. It's Mickie & Trish; Vince will have them going at it for going on ten."

"We'll see," Randy smirked, turning his attention to the monitor.

Sure enough, in less than four minutes Trish had got the pin and her hand was raised in victory. Shannon was happy for her friend but also bitter that she had lost her little bet with Randy. Turning, she noticed he had a satisfied smirk on his face. "I guess it's just you and me tonight, Blondie."

"Don't get any ideas, Rand." She remarked with a roll of the eyes. "So what do you have planned?"

"I'll get back to you," He smiled, the clogs in his head already turning as he tried to think of something appropriate to do for her twentieth. "Go borrow a sexy number from one of the divas and I'll meet you after I've showered, okay?"

"Alright," She agreed hesitantly, reaching up to kiss his cheek. "I'll see you later then."

-----------

Shannon spritzed some more perfume and watched herself in the oversized mirror, doing her best to ignore Stephanie who was stood behind her sending disapproving glances her way. She smoothed down the gorgeous black dress she had borrowed from Melina and finally turned when she heard Steph let out a dramatic sigh. "Okay, Spit it out."

"Huh?" Stephanie asked nonchalantly. "What are you talking about?"

"You've been stood there for the past ten minutes looking at me like I have, or I'm about to commit some serious crime. What is it?"

Stephanie hesitated but eventually cracked, leading her over to the couch where they both sat down. "Do you really think it's a good idea to go out with Randy? I mean, I know with everything that's happened you feel like you owe him or something, but-"

"Woah," She interrupted with a frown, her eyes narrowing at Stephanie's choice of words. "It's not like that at all. I'm grateful that Randy was there for me when I needed him, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to dinner with him because I feel as though I have to. He's my friend."

"I understand that, but he's alot older than you and he's not exactly, well..." She trailed off, unsure of how to word what she was about to say to her. "He's been going through some issues that you don't need to deal with right now, Shannon."

"His suspension? He told me that it was a misunderstanding." She huffed, crossing her arms. She refused to believe that Randy was one of those guys who would end up as a statistic or in the dirt sheets for taking some illegal substance. Besides, he had promised her that he was clean.

"My dad doesn't suspend his top stars to intentionally lose money, Shan." Stephanie answered knowingly, upset that she had to be the one to break it to her. "And even if that was a mistake on our part, what about when Bruce caught him backstage smoking a joint? And what about that anger management course my Dad had to send him on?"

"That's all in the past.." She mumbled sourly. "People are capable of change, you know."

"I agree," She said with a nod, reaching for her hand. "But you've just got out of something serious. Do you really want to jump straight back in with someone who's still trying to find himself?"

"Like I said, Randy and I are just friends." She said, pulling herself up. "I'm not looking to jump into anything with him or anyone else. You need to trust me, okay?"

"What do I tell Paul?" She finally conceded with a sigh.

"Tell him the truth," She shrugged, heading towards the door. "I'll see you later."

She left Stephanie's office and was met by that pair of familiar blue eyes. She smiled instantly and took a proper look at him, admiring the black dress pants and maroon shirt he had changed into. "Wow, you scrub up well."

Randy grinned and looked up her up and down. "I could say the same, but then you always look good. You ready to go?"

She paused and thought back to what Stephanie had said before nodding and taking his offered hand. "Let's go."

**Later on that night...**

Shannon laughed again, holding onto her sides as Randy said something else to make her laugh. It was the early hours of the morning and Randy was walking her to the door of Stephanie & Paul's penthouse apartment. The couple had always talked of moving to New York, but after everything that had happened with Shannon and pressure from Vince, they had finally taken the plunge.

Randy had treated Shannon to dinner in Little Italy and had ended the night by taking her dancing at a club he knew down town. For Shannon, it had been the perfect way to celebrate her birthday and being with Randy had made it even better. They had been close while he was in Evolution, but then it was more of a "looking out for your the younger" type thing. Now Randy was finally able to talk to her as an adult and appreciate just how much she had matured over the last couple of years.

He casually took her hand as they walked together. It wasn't a bold move and wasn't meant to mean anything romantic, but it just felt right to him at that time. She smiled up at him and leaned into him, finally stopping once they reached the door of her luxury home.

"So are you glad you lost the bet?" Randy asked, a grin playing on his lips.

"I guess," She teased, smiling up at him sweetly. "Thanks for tonight, Rand. It's nice to get back some normality. Things have been so weird and stressful lately.."

"It's my pleasure," He answered, giving her hand a squeeze. "You've got to promise me this isn't a one time thing, though."

"Are you sure? It kinda' salts your game when I'm around." She laughed, remembering back to at the club when a bevy of girls had figured she was his girlfriend and had not bothered approaching him.

"Meh," He shrugged. "I don't need those girls all over me when I've got you."

It wasn't meant to sound the way that it had come out, but never less Shannon found herself taken aback by his words. They were just friends and Randy had obviously cottoned on to how he had sounded, because his eyes widened and he immediately went to explain himself.

He didn't have chance, though. The door they stood in front of swung open and an unamused Paul appeared, a frown evident as he eyed the two of them. Shannon looked at him and then followed his gaze down to their joined hands, quickly snatching hers away as she nervously pushed a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Umm..." Shannon stumbled, swallowing hard. She could already tell he was pissed, and she knew damn well it wasn't because of the time. "Paul, I-"

"Inside, NOW." He said in a low voice, pointing behind him. She hesitated for a few seconds before finally mouthing a "sorry" to Randy and disappearing inside. Once she was out of sight, Randy went to speak, desperate to smooth things over for himself and the young blonde.

"Paul, listen I-"

"Save it," Paul interrupted, his eyes piercing through his. "I'll say this once, and once only, kid. I don't care if you and Shannon are _'just friends_," He paused, rolling his eyes as he used his fingers to do rabbit ears. "Your twenty-six years old and she's an impressionable kid. Stay the hell away from her. I mean it."

If there was ever a moment where Paul lived up to his wrestling persona, this was it. Randy said nothing; he wasn't about to promise him he would because Shannon meant too much to him, but at the same time he wasn't going to make things harder for her by saying no and getting into it right here and now with her Uncle and father figure. Instead he held his gaze as Paul backed up, the older man sending him one more piercing look before shutting the door in his face.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: **A Perfect Moment RUINED!

**A/N & DISCLAIMER: **_Another chappy for you guys. I think you should show your appreciation for this one by reviewing because I've been SOOO flooded with work that its been hard to find the time to actually write this. You guys are lucky I love you! Haha. Alright enough rambling from me.. I've got some other peoples stories to catch up on because I haven't even had the chance to read the updates from my favs yet. Aahhh!_

_All I own is Shannon.._

**------------------------------**

18th September 2006 / RAW in Montreal, Quebec.

"...And what about last year, when he put all that tanning shit in that girls gym bag? Is that the kinda' people you want as your friends? As your boyfriend?"

Shannon had to resist the urge to roll her eyes. Paul had been lecturing her for the past half hour on why Randy wasn't a good guy and it was beginning to do her head in. With an exaggerated yawn she moved her bored eyes towards Paul's more serious ones. "For the hundredth time, he's _**not**_ my boyfriend. Were _**friends**_. Is it that hard to comprehend?"

"A guy and a girl who spend as much time together as you two cannot be just friends, especially when the guy finds it fucking impossible to keep his dick in his pants. Do you have any idea on what he's really like, Shan? I rode with that guy for a year; he was out every night, picking up girls and then leaving them in the morning like they were worthless-"

"That was the old Randy," She cut in, feeling a weird sensation in her stomach when Paul described his relations with other women. Jealousy, maybe? "He's changed now."

"Changed?" He scoffed. "Please. You and I both know that all that anger management shit was to keep Vince happy.. It didn't help him one bit. The guys a lost cause."

"That_** guy **_used to be your friend," She huffed, feeling bad that Randy was not here to defend himself. "Why are you slating him?"

"I'm not slating him, I'm just telling you how it is." Paul said rather matter-of-factly.

"Your slating him," Shannon reiterated, crossing her arms. "Do you know how hard it is for me to find genuine friends here, Paul? One's that aren't going to come running to you when they have some dirt on me, thinking that it's going to get them higher on the card? I love everyone here, but I can't _**trust **_them. I trust Randy. He's there for me, not because your my Uncle or that Vince treats me like his Granddaughter, but because he cares for me. What's so wrong with having someone like that in my life?"

"You can trust him?" Paul asked, tilting his head. "I was the first person he called when all that shit happened. Didn't you ask him not to tell me?"

"God, I don't understand you!" She huffed, her brows furrowing in frustration. "Now your saying that he's a bad friend for telling you that I was hurt? Sure I told him not to, but I'm glad he did because I needed you." His eyes seemed to weaken at that statement. "He knew that calling you could potentially ruin out friendship, but he took that risk because he knew that you were the one person who I do need, even if I wasn't so willing to admit it back then."

Stephanie agreed at this point, making her presence known from her place on the couch. "She's right there, Paul. He did tell you where she was."

"Who's side are you on?" Paul frowned, turning to face his wife. "You think Randy's the type of guy she should be hanging around with?"

"Not exactly," She admitted, moving from the couch and to Paul. "Look, just let me talk to her okay? You have to be out in the ring in less than ten minutes, anyway.."

Stephanie was used to getting her own way, and tonight was no different. Her persuasion earned a nod from Paul and a quick kiss on the lips as he begrudgingly headed for the door. He stopped just before he left and turned to look back at his niece. "We're not done talking." He warned, pointing at her.

Shannon breathed a sigh of relief once he was gone and fell back on the couch, pulling one of the cushions over her face. What Paul had failed to realize is that during that whole argument she was struggling to fight a killer hangover that was a result of heavy partying the previous night. Yesterday was Unforgiven and Trish Stratus's last match. To mark her retirement, she and a bunch of the girls had gone on a bar crawl. Although she wasn't of legal age, Shannon'd had a fake I.D since she was seventeen and had most definitely abused it last night.

"Your head still hurting?" Steph asked empathetically as she reached for her Chanel bag. Shannon nodded, her face still covered with the cushion. Stephanie took some pain killers from her purse and paired them with a bottle of water, nudging Shannon with her foot so that she paid attention. "Here, take these."

Shannon dropped the pillow to her right and gratefully accepted the pain killers, sitting forward so that she could down them with the water. Afterwards she leant back and groaned, silently wishing that they would just automatically take the pain away. "Thanks Steph."

"I'm not covering for you again. You may have just turned twenty, but incase you didn't realize the legal drinking age is 21." She lectured, her arms crossed as she faced the blonde on the couch.

"I don't mean just for that, but for earlier too. Paul would have never shut up if you hadn't of stepped in. I appreciate it."

"That doesn't mean that I agree with everything you said back there, Shan." Stephanie sighed, settling down beside her. "Randy's not exactly Mr. Perfect."

"No shit. I can't really imagine Randy with blonde hair, can you?" Shannon answered like a typical smart ass, referring to Curt Hennig. "Plus he's really not that good at throwing a towel around either.." Stephanie didn't even crack a smile. "That was a joke.. You're supposed to laugh. You know, ha-ha?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes, muttering something under her breath. "So you never told me how your date with Randy went."

"It wasn't a date," She insisted, turning her head to look at her. "But... It was great. He took me to this cute little restaurant in Little Italy and then afterwards when we got outside, there was one of those guys that sell the roses for like, ridiculously high prices.."

"Paul hates them," Stephanie commented. "Did the guy hound you?"

"Uhh, he didn't really have to. Randy bought the whole lot."

Stephanie blinked in disbelief. "What?"

"Randy bought all of them," She explained, smiling when she thought back to that night. "Why do you think I came home with like, a million roses?"

"I didn't really notice because Paul was yelling so much," She admitted.

"Well, after he did that we went for drinks at this bar down town, and it was just real nice ya know? We had fun without having to get drunk."

"And you couldn't have done the same last night?" She frowned, bringing back up last nights over-the-top partying.

She shrugged sheepishly before checking her watch, jumping up from the couch. "I'm going to get Aurora from Vince. Then her and I are going to have a looong nap together in the bus because I'm hung-over and she's a baby. We both need our rest."

"Her need for rest is justified, yours is stupid." Stephanie grinned, reaching forward to poke her playfully. "But make sure you bring my baby back here first so I can see her, okay?"

"Will do," She smiled, giving her a quick hug before she left. She'd only managed to walk a couple of steps before a rush of dizziness hit her and she had to stop. She felt for the wall and leant back against it, letting out an inward groan as she closed her eyes.

"Heavy night?"

She jumped when she heard Randy's voice and looked up at him, sending him a small smile. "Hey 'killer. How's the lip?"

Last night at Unforgiven he'd faced Carlito and had ended up with a busted lip that required stitches. Shannon had been there to fuss over him and act like his whole head was about to fall off, even going as far as to hold his hand while he got a shot, despite the fact that she was extremely needle phobic. She was adorable.

"Better," he said, smiling the best he could despite the stitches in his injured lip. "Have you recovered from last night?"

"Oh, so you heard about that huh?" She blushed, embarrassed by what he must have heard from the others who had seen her at the bar.

"Heard?" He blinked in confusion. "I was there, Shana."

Her eyes widened. _He was there!? Surely she would have remembered seeing him. Not that she did remember much from last night anyway.. _"You're lying." She accused, crossing her arms.

"No I'm not," He chuckled honestly. "When I got there you were doing shots with Trish & Amy at the bar. It looked like you'd been there for awhile, babe. You were pretty wasted."

"I don't even remember," She mumbled, rubbing her face. "Was I that bad?"

"Nah." He said with a straight face before breaking out into a grin. "Not unless you consider dancing on the bar and then taking body shots with half of the divas bad."

"Shut up. I didn't do that." She huffed.

"Wanna bet?" He asked, a mischievous look in his eye. "Guess who got it all on tape?"

Her mouth dropped. "You better be joking..."

"Nope. Cena recorded a whole five minutes of you acting like one of them chicks from Girls Gone Wild and bluetoothed it me this morning."

"If either of you have shown anyone I'll kill you," She warned, pointing a finger in his face. "I mean it."

"Relax, Cena deleted it. But me?" He smirked. "I want something in return before I get rid of it."

"Name your price, Orton." Shannon sighed. She knew that if that video got out and ended up getting back to Paul than he would first kill her for ever touching a drop of alcohol, and then he would hunt down the bartender for serving her.

"Dinner again with me tonight," He said, resting his hand against the wall she was leaning on. "My treat."

"That's it?" She asked warily. "That's all you want?"

"Well..." He began, a glimmer in his eye as he thought of the possibilities. "Unless you've got something else in mind."

She laughed and smacked his arm. "You wish, Orton. I'll see if I can escape Paul and his over-protectiveness for the night and I'll get back to you. I've gotta go get Aurora from Vince though, so I'll catch up with you before the show starts?"

He nodded. "Sounds good."

"Alright, stay out of trouble." She told him, first kissing his cheek and then his injured lip as if she was trying to take away the pain.

Randy stepped back and watched her walk away, his fingers tracing the spot where her lips had just been. The only other time he'd had butterflies was before a match, so why was it now that his stomach was doing somersaults?

_**Later on that night...**_

Shannon had managed to convince Paul that she was having a girly night in with the divas and had met up with Randy as soon as the show was over. The two had decided to head somewhere more casual so Shannon had dressed in some black leggings and a black polo neck with a stylish grey pinafore dress thrown over the top. She looked stunning and it was probably the first time that Randy's mouth had dropped at an outfit that didn't show off ample cleavage. As for Randy, he wore dark jeans with one of his famous Affliction shirts and a black suit jacket over the top.

They had ended up at a cosy little Mediterranean place in the heart of Montreal and after spending almost three hours there, the pair had agreed that the next time they were in the area they would most definitely have to come back. After a walk through a beautiful park nearby, Randy took Shannon back to their hotel and walked her back to her room.

Once outside, Shannon turned to face him and smiled. "So."

"So... I have something for you." Randy admitted, digging into his pant pocket. She watched him with inquisitive eyes and waited until he had retrieved what he was looking for, a pretty blue box that could only be from one place. _TIFFANYS!_ "I didn't get a chance to get you anything for your birthday, so I picked this up for you this morning."

She took the box from his extended hand and carefully opened it, her breath catching in her throat when her eyes met the silver charm bracelet that was inside. It had a link clasp bracelet with one beautiful silver heart-shaped charm included. Her eyes immediately began to water as he took it from the box and fastened it around her wrist. "The links open and close so you can add more charms. I figured it'd be pretty sweet if we added more as time went on, you know?"

She nodded her head, biting her lip to stop herself from letting out a whimper. Jason had never gone out of his way to do things like this for her and he was her boyfriend. But Randy? He was completely different. He made her feel special, loved and wanted - something that she wasn't used to. "Rand.. It's beautiful. I can't accept this."

"beautiful like you," He smiled. "And yes you can, Shana. You deserve it."

"Thank you!" She sniffled, flinging her arms around his neck. He chuckled and held her close to him, unable to stop himself from inhaling the strawberry scent that radiated from her blonde tresses. He felt those damn butterflies again and thought he was about to go crazy - What was it about this girl!?

As they pulled away from each other, their eyes locked and they were left staring at each other deeply. They remained like that for a couple of minutes, both unsure on what they were doing or if the impure thoughts running through their heads were right or not. Just as Randy began moving towards her, a screech could be heard from further down the hall.

"SHANNON! IS THAT YOU BABY!?"

Shannon's eyes widened when she heard the familiar female voice and she stumbled backwards, her back hitting the door as she tried to comprehend who she had just heard. It took her at least thirty seconds before she was able to turn her head in their direction, and when she did she could already feel a wave of nausea hit her like a ton of bricks...

"Mom? What are you doing here!?"


End file.
